Matthew McConaughey says of his real-life character in "Dallas Buyers Club": "It's the story of a rodeo cowboy with a 7th grade education who gets a 30-day death sentence, and instead of laying down and dying, stands up and fights." ANNE MARIE FOX, FOCUS FEATURES

Matthew McConaughey admits that his character in "Dallas Buyers Club" isn't very likable. "This isn't a typical Hollywood story where the hero has a big change of heart in the last act. That wasn't Ron Woodroof. But Ron Woodroof still has a fascinating story to tell." ANNE MARIE FOX, FOCUS FEATURES

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Matthew McConaughey says some people expressed concern about the amount of weight he lost for his role in "Dallas Buyers Club," but that he was never in any danger. ANNE MARIE FOX, FOCUS FEATURES

If you are a fan of romantic Matthew McConaughey or funny Matthew McConaughey or shirtless Matthew McConaughey, these have been a difficult couple of years for you.

The affable 44-year-old actor with the slow Texas drawl has abandoned his romantic, comedic and shirtless roles of late to pursue a string of dark, dramatic roles that have transformed him into one of the most respected actors in Hollywood. There is no greater risk-taker in this town right now, and all that risk-taking may be rewarded when Oscar nominations are announced.

In films such as “The Lincoln Lawyer,” “Magic Mike,” “Bernie,” “The Paperboy,” “Killer Joe” and “Mud,” he has shown a determination never seen in more lighthearted fare like “Ghosts of Girlfriends Past,” “The Wedding Planner” and “Failure to Launch.”

He takes the biggest risk of all in his new film, “Dallas Buyers Club,” in which he plays Ron Woodroof, a real-life homophobic electrician and rodeo cowboy who was given 30 days to live after being diagnosed with the AIDS virus in 1985. He not only outlived his doctor’s initial death sentence, but became a crusader in the fight for the rights of AIDS patients.

Following the lead of Christian Bale (“The Machinist”) and Tom Hanks (“Philadelphia” and “Castaway”), McConaughey lost more than 40 pounds to play Woodroof as he battled the disease.

When we met with the actor in Beverly Hills, he was thinner than usual but almost back to his shirtless, fighting weight. He next will be seen in Martin Scorsese’s “The Wolf of Wall Street,” opening next month, and will star opposite Woody Harrelson in the 2014 HBO series “True Detective.”

McConaughey, who has three children with his wife, Brazilian model Camila Alves, explained why he turned down millions in romantic comedy money to act in low-budget independent films, why we need not have worried about his extreme weight loss and why this is not an AIDS movie to avoid.

Q. We last got together to discuss “The Lincoln Lawyer,” and I was under the impression that it was a temporary respite from your usual spate of romantic comedies. I had no idea what was coming. What did you know?

A. It was a conscious decision. But did I know that “The Lincoln Lawyer” would be a success? Did I know that “Killer Joe” would make its own dent? Did I know that “Bernie” would be the little engine that could? Did I know that “Dallas Buyers Club” would get people talking about me being considered for a nomination? The answer to all those questions is no. What I did know was that all those projects worked, and they were all special. I could have done the same work in all those films, and three of them could have come and gone and you never would have heard of them.

Q. But what was your personal tipping point that made you want to go in this direction, and away from what you were doing before?

A. I was looking to re-charge my relationship with my career.

Q. What was wrong with your career at that point?

A.Nothing was wrong with it, but I wanted to work on something that made me go, “Whoa.” I wanted to work on a character that was so different that I asked, “Who is that guy?” and “I want to investigate that guy” and “I want to go out and find that guy.”

Q. I’m not denigrating the work you did before these films, but are you saying that it was getting too easy for you?

A. In a romantic comedy, there is a certain ceiling and floor that you are somewhat bound by, and when you venture out of those boundaries, it doesn’t work. If you go beyond the ceiling, then it gets weird. If you go below that floor, you sink the project. It’s not life and death. It’s a formula. And I don’t use that word in a negative way, but that’s what it is. Well, I wanted to raise the ceiling, and lower the floor of what I was doing.

Q. What did you find in these varied characters that allowed you to widen the boundaries?

A.They’re all somewhat anti-heroes. They’re all kind of outcasts. They all make up their own rules, for better or worse.

Q. OK, you’ve explained on a practical level why you wanted to do more serious work. But I’m still trying to understand the emotion behind the decision to alter your career course?

A. It just started when I decided to say “no” to things. I just didn’t want to do that stuff anymore. There were attractive paychecks being offered, but that’s not where I wanted to go.

Q.But why?

A. Because I wanted the experience. I wanted the experience of not knowing how I was going to get there. I had a pretty good idea of what the romantic comedy adventure was like. I didn’t want to know. What that meant was that I had to seek out roles that I didn’t know that well. I needed to challenge myself.

Q.Did any of this have to do with where you are in life? You are now of a certain age, you have a beautiful wife and three children. Let’s face it, you have settled down. Was that a factor?

A. Did it help that I had a child on the way? Yes, it did. This wasn’t about a whole string of wild Saturdays, like when I was single. This was about going to work on Monday morning.

Q. It’s interesting that at a time when most men look for the safe, more comfortable place at work that you are just now taking these big chances.

A. I think it’s true that for most men, the more stable you feel at home, the higher you can fly.

Q.As you prepared for “Dallas Buyers Club,” how many people advised you not to lose so much weight?

A. I wasn’t entertaining discussion on the subject. It was not an audition or up for debate.

Q. But you are aware that there were shocking photos of you looking emaciated in the tabloids, and that there was some intense media debate about whether you had gone too far and were endangering your life?

A. I was aware of it, and some people did say something to me on occasion, but I told them to trust me. I was never close to dying. I was very much alive.

Q.You followed a careful regimen to lose the weight?

A. I did it right. The truth is that the body is much more resilient than you give it credit for. Relatively speaking, I was not starving myself. I was in control, and watching myself all the time.

Q.I understand you spoke to Ron’s family before you portrayed him. Did they have any concerns with how he was going to be portrayed?

A. Of course, they have a family member who was going to be the subject of major motion picture, so it was all a bit overwhelming to them, but I wouldn’t say they had concerns as such. But they were eager to share information about him. They had video scrapbooks, his diary and other personal things. I really got to see who this guy was.

Q. He’s kind of a rough guy, and not very sympathetic in the beginning. What did you see as his redeeming qualities?

A. Even his family said he was a bastard. But I never moralized this guy. I was just hanging my hat on him. I think he was an interesting guy.

Q. There are people who shy away from movies about AIDS because they think they’re going to be hit over the head with messages. Is this another documentary about AIDS?

A. It isn’t. It’s the story of a rodeo cowboy with a 7th grade education who gets a 30-day death sentence, and instead of laying down and dying, stands up and fights. And I think we pulled off something that is not easy to pull off. We give you medicine that’s good for you and still tastes good. You’re even allowed to laugh in this movie. It’s not a crusading movie. It’s a movie about this guy. The message or crusading may come out of that, but it’s always just a story about this guy and what he did. He gains compassion in the end, but this isn’t a typical Hollywood story where the hero has a big change of heart in the last act. That wasn’t Ron Woodroof. But Ron Woodroof still has a fascinating story to tell.

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